Helpfully, just as I got in my delivery of bricks turned up. Not so helpfully someone was parked in the way, preventing the lorry from getting round the back so they had to be dropped off at the roadside. Obviously they cant stay there as they're blocking the path, but not to worry I've got a wheelbarrow and my backs feeling better.
600 odd bricks later and my backs not feeling quite as better as it was! So where did that leave me for this weekends planned fun? Well, after much Umming and Ahhing I eventually decided to head down to Godalming Friday night, ready for the planned early start Saturday morning and see how I felt when I got up. I told "The Emma" I'd probably be back home for breakfast and very nearly was, as when I got up at early O'Clock ready for my 07:00 start slot, it still didn't feel right. I had a bit of a stretch, banged some deep heat on and eventually decided that as I'd got this far I might as well head over to the start, collect my number and see how it felt. A tentative run up to the socially distanced start area didn't feel too bad. Maybe some of the stiffness I was now feeling was down to not having run at all in the week? Going from doing something every day (running, cycling, weights) to nothing, always causes a few issues as your muscles stiffen up and your body starts to ask what's going on. Well, now I'm at the start I might as well go for it, I can always pull out if things don't feel right. So, through the excellently organised, socially distanced start procedure and on the nod from the starter off I go. 6 Months after the cancellation of everything, were finally back running organised events again and this was going to be a good one. 38 miles of trail running on a mainly off road loop around Guildford following the route of the The Fox Way, what's not too like about that? The Fox Way walk can be completed in 7 easy stages it says on the website. Surprisingly it doesn't mention anything about running it all in one go. But "a feint heart never won fair maiden" as they say, so lets see what we've got.
From the start it was a great route, following the Wey Navigation from Godalming before heading out towards Shere and the Surrey Hills for some serious climbing. A couple of miles in and my stiff and achy muscles seemed to settle in. With the aches and pains fading, and the trail stretching away in front of me, all seemed right in the world again.
Having been set of at 20 second intervals there was always someone just in front, making it all too easy for the pace to creep up as you slowly gained on them. Keeping it slow and steady was going to be the secret for today though. Over this sort of distance going out too hard is a sure fire recipe for disaster. If there's one advantage to taking it slow, it's that there's plenty of time for looking around and the view from the highpoints back over Hampshire was well worth the effort of getting up there in the first place. By the time the second aid station came along at the 13 mile mark I was thoroughly enjoying myself. The sun was shining, but the strong breeze was keeping the temperature down to manageable levels and the majority of the really hard climbing was behind us. A quick stop too refill my water bottles and grab a biscuit and onwards. Just under the 2 hour mark for the first 13 miles seemed about right and I was feeling good. Across the A3 and out towards Ripley and the top of the loop where we picked up the river Wey again and things flattened out after the steep inclines of the Surrey Hills. This was a great section, following the tow path, with the colourful Canal Barges, families out for a morning stroll, kids on bikes and all the normal Canal side life going on around us making for some interesting running. Pushing on through Worplesdon towards Aldershot I had a hard half hour or so. Despite feeling good only minutes before, the dreaded cramps started to bite, getting first one calf and then the other. Dropping the pace a bit I knew that things weren't going to get any better until I got to the next aid station and got some more fluids on board. Dehydrations always the killer when it's warm, and despite having already tucked away a good 1.5 Liters of fluids it obviously wasn't enough. Plod on though, there's only a couple of miles to go to the next water stop and the chance to rehydrate properly, and not a lot of choice but to keep going. By the time I covered those couple of miles I'd been stopped in my tracks a couple of times and reduced to not much more than walking pace, making for a long couple of miles. But, arriving eventually and putting away another Liter of water and refilling my bottle seemed to do the trick and when I set off again a few minutes later things felt much better, or as well as they can do when you've got nearly 30 miles in your legs! Onto the last stint then, slog up the steady climb to the Hogs back and then it's all down hill from there. Yeah right! Of course it's not, but it's not as hilly as the start so that's a blessing. I'm quite happy to admit that the last few miles were bloody hard going. Ticking off the miles one by one seemed to take forever, 34,35, come on how much further? 36, my God it must be nearly over! 37 and the finish lines in sight, 38 and that's it, over and done. 6 hours and 33 minutes after setting off and I'm back where I started from, having burned an estimated 4000 Calories, covered 55,470 steps and spent most of the time with a big smile on my face. 6 and 1/2 hours for 38 miles, I don't think that's too shabby. I think that if I'd managed to avoid the dehydration and cramps in the middle I could probably have cut half an hour or so off that time and I've learned a few things from this one, so well see how we get on next time. That's assuming there is a next time!
For some strange reason when I dragged myself out of bed on Sunday morning my legs felt a bit stiff. I thought about having a cup of tea in bed, but having struggled down the stairs in the first place I couldn't face going back up, just to come down again later, so bravely retreated to the sofa for a couple of hours.
Eventually boredom got the better of me (Ok I lasted about 10 minutes), so I wandered slowly up to the allotment, for a couple of hours of gentle pottering in the early morning sunshine. Legs stretched and back home for a mid morning brew, then best make the most of my day at home and the dry weather and start shifting some of these bricks that are now filling up the entire back garden before it get's all wet and wintery. Now my Bricklaying skills are at about the same level as most of the things I do. Lets just say that they are agricultural to say the best and probably wouldn't have looked out of place on the Generation Game back in the 70's. But like most things, if nothing else I'm a trier and I'll get there in the end. Oh and spending the afternoon bent over did wonders for my tired legs and back. Not!
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Paul PerrattOld enough to know better, young enough to still feel invincible, stupid enough to keep on trying the same thing again and again. Cyclist, Gardener, Runner, Hiker, Cook, Woodworker, Engineer, Jack of all trades and master of none, Anti social old git and all round miserable bugger. Archives
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